Heating or cooling system



April 4*, 1939. J. KUESTER ET AL HEATING OR COOLING SYSTEM Filed Oct. 8, 1934 y S Y 1 m Q MM m E Lu 3 a M 4 MM Q m 6 l zad// 1% 7 7 a 4 k 6 0 /1F- fi 4 m L 2 lo 7 a0 .1. LL 4/ i f i 4 W E a 0 m W w z Hm 5 we 2: a m m 4 3% M M m Patented Apr. 4, i9

HEATING R COOLING SYSTEM John Kuester and Frank A. Beck, Menasha, Wis.

Application October 8,

Claims.

Our invention relates to improvements in heating or cooling processes and systems.

While our invention is applicable to both heating and cooling systems, our specification will be directed to a heating system in which a radiating system is used in combination with a source of heat, and our invention pertains primarily to the connections between the source of heat and the radiation system and the control of passage of heat from the source to the radiation system. It will be understood that hereinafter wherever heating or heating means is mentioned, we refer to the use of either heating or refrigerating processes or means.

The object of our invention is to provide a heating system in which heat disseminating means such as a radiator system is separated from a source of high heat and the temperature in the radiator system is merely modulated at intervals, as required, by the establishment of circulation between the radiator system and the source.-

Another object of our invention is to provide a heating system wherein a circulating and radiating system is provided with means for maintaining a forced, substantially constant circulation therein of heated fluid, in combination with a storage tank or other source of heated fluid at a relatively extremely high temperature, and means whereby the storage tank or supply is normally divorced from the circulating and radiating system, but is connected with it by means of a by-pass controlled by a valve which may interconnect the circulating and radiating system on the one hand and the storage tank or source of extreme heat on the other, whereby to supply to the radiating and circulating system a charge of fluid from the storage tank or other source to modify the temperature of fluid in the circulating system.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a vertical section through a heating system installation embodying our invention, certain parts thereof being shown in somewhat diagrammatic form.

Figure 2 is a detail of a valve suitable for use in our installation.

Like parts are identified by the same reference characters throughout the views.

In the drawing we have shown our invention installed in a heat exchange system which would be suitable for heating a home.

As shown in the drawing, our invention contemplates the use of a radiating and circulating system which includes radiators Ill through which 1934, Serial No. 147,334 (01. 237-2) heated fluid is circulated from a header II and through pipes I2 and i3. Return pipes l4 and I 5 extend through a T" connection is, through pipes I1 and control valve I8 to pump l9, which forces a substantially constant circulation of fluid through the connections just described, by reason of the substantially constant energization of motor 20 connected to the pump l9.

As a second main element in our improved system, we provide a storage tank 2| for the storage of fluid at extremely high temperature with a feed pipe connection 22 to the main control valve l8 and a counterflow pipe connection 23 to feed into the bottom of the tank at 24, it being understood that no counterflow of fluid to thetank at 24 is possible unless the valve I8 is so adjusted as to permit flow of fluid through the feed pipe connection 22 into the circulatory and radiating system described above.

In stating that the fluid in storage tank 2| is of extremely high or low temperature, we mean that whereas in the usual hot water heating system in a home the temperature of fluid in the radiators l0 rarely is required to exceed 175 degrees, in the operation of our improved heating system the temperature of fluid in the tank 2| may reach the boiling point, or in some installations where pressure is permissible, the temperature may run as high as 240 degrees or more. The temperature of the fluid in the tank 2| may be maintained by any suitable means known to the art. For instance, a feed connection through pipe 25 and the return lead 26 may supply the needed attachment to an ordinary hot water heater, or by means of suitable electric heating equipment installed directly in the tank 2|, the temperature may be maintained automatically electrically, it being an important feature of our invention that the storage tank provide a supply of fluid at extremely high temperature for heating purposes.

Another very important element in our invention is the valve l8 and the control thereof, which fundamentally is intended to provide means for interconnecting the source of heated fluid with the circulatory and radiating system, and attention is directed particularly to the means for controlling the valve l8 as follows.

In a typical installation of a heating system in a building the radiators ID are in a room above a floor 30 and the circulatory power and control devices and the storage tank 2| are in a room below. In the room heated by the radiator Hi, we provide a thermostat 3| provided with a bimetallic unit 32 of a conventional configuration as shown in Fig. 1 and the thermostat is provided with contact points 33 and 3'4 so that at high and low temperatures respectively one or the other of two electric circuits may be closed whereby a motor and speed reducer 35 may be energized for rotation in one direction or another to open or to close the automatic valve l8 referred to above.

While the electric circuit and a power control device for the motor and speed reducer 35 are not claimed to be novel, we have set forth in our drawing dual circuits for the control of the motor at 35, which circuits include a ground wire 36 connected to the thermostatic element 32, a valve closing wire 31 and a valve opening wire 33 connected to the contact wires 33 and 34 respectively, thus when the thermostat is cooled and the thermostatic element moves to the left to contact with the contact point 34 current is established through wire 38 and through the automatic reversing switch 39 and through the ground wire 33 to accomplish a valve opening operation in the valve 13.

When the thermostaticelement 32 is heated, it moves to a position whereby to contact with contact point 33 and establishes an electric circuit through wire 31 and through the automatic reversing switch and through the ground wire 36 to energize the motor 35 for rotation in the opposite direction whereby to close valve I3.

Adjacent the thermostatic element 32 we provide preferably within the casing (not shown) around the entire thermostat a resistance element 40 which is in series with the circuit established when the thermostatic element is in con tact with the contact point 34.

The motor and speed reducer 35 are provided with a crank arm 41 upon which a pitman 42 is mounted for connection with a valve plunger rod 43; the valve plunger rod 43 extends into the valve 13 and is provided in the valve with a valve plug 43 which is movable with the valve plunger rod 43 from the position shown in Fig. 2 where it blocks oil? the connection to the port 46 to an upper position against seat 48 where it will block off port 41 leading to port 44. A port leads to a connection to the pump 13. The port 44 leads to a connection with pipe I1 and the port 46 leads to a connection with pipe 22. It thus appears that valve I8 is fundamentally a three-way valve. Normally, the valve is in the position shown in Fig. 2 with the connection through port 43 to pipe 22 completely closed, and ,in this position the connection from port 45 to port 44 is unobstructed through port .41.

Assuming that the valve plug 43 is in the position shown at 42, a complete cycle of operations of the valve may be described as follows: The thermostatic element being cooled by the constantly dropping temperature in the room afiected by the radiator 10, will move to the left and contact point 34, thus energizing the motor at 35 and causing the crank arm and plunger rod tomove the plug 49 against seat 43 to close port 41. At the same time the motor is energized for this operation, the resistance 40 is energized and is caused to radiate heat and thereby influence the thermostatic element 32 which will quite promptly move away'from contact point 34 and establish a contact with point 33. The circuit through wire 31 will then be established and the motor, by reason of the automatic reversing switch, will move the crank arm oppositely and thus cause the plug 43 to move away from the seat 48, open the port 41 and close the port 43.

The structure above described is admlrab iy suited to the modern heating or cooling of homes or other places where heated fluid may be suitably used in radiating and circulating systems, since the storage tank 2| may be provided with high temperature fluid at times or the day when electrical current may be cheaply procured, and the extreme temperature of the stored fluid may be maintained over a considerable period of time,

during which only at intervals and comparatively momentarily the storage tank is connected into the ircuiatory and radiating system which we have escribed.

Lil c wlse, where electrically induced heat is unobtainable or impracticable and usual hand fired boiler means are used, there is no necessity for extremely high and extremely low fluctuations of heat in a room heated by aradiating system merely because of inaccuracies and uncertainties of such hand firing, for no matter how high or how low the temperature in the storage tank 2| may prevail (provided that it does not go below the minimum needed in the radiators), the effective divorcement of the radiator system from the source of heat or cold will prevent extremes of temperature from aifecting the radiating system except as the thermostat may repeatedly set up a cycle of operations of the valve l8.

We claim:

1. The combination with a source of stored fluid at extreme temperature, a radiator and complete circulatory system normally divorced therefrom, and a valve including means whereby to connect the source to the system at controlled intervals. 2. In a heating system provided with radiators and a circulating system for fluid passing through said radiators, a source of fluid at extreme temperature, a valve and pipe connections for estab-* lishing fluid connection whereby to include or exclude said storage tank within said circulatory system, means for moving said valve in a complete cycle of movement from closed to open position and back to closed position, and a thermostat for controlling said valve operating means, said thermostat being connected with a source of electric current and appropriate electrical connections to said valve operating means, whereby to intermittently initiate saidcycle of operations.

3. The combination with a source of fluid at extreme temperature, a radiator and complete circulatory system normally divorced therefrom, a valve including means whereby to connect the source to the system at controlled intervals, said means including a thermostat within a zone influenced by the radiator system, a source of electrical current provided with a conductor circuit completed or disconnected by said thermostat, an electric heater unit in effective relation to the thermostat and energized or deenerglzed under control thereof, and a motor device responsive to the control of the thermostat and said source of electric power whereby to open and close said valve. 4

4. A heating process comprising the storing of heated fluid with minimum loss of heat by radiation, circulating a. heat radiating fluid independently of the stored fluid and intermittently interchanging portions of the stored fluid and the circulating fluid and controlling such deliveries with reference to the temperature of medium receiving the radiating heat from the circulating fluid.

5. The combination with a source of fluid at extreme temperature, a radiator and complete circulatory system normally divorced therefrom whereby to provide space heating around the radiator, a valve including means whereby to connect the source to the system at controlled intervals, a thermostat positioned in the space heated by the radiator system provided with electrical connections with an electric heater adjacent the thermostat and provided with connection to the thermostat for the heating thereof when the thermostat is cooled, and means controlled by the thermostat for momentarily opening and closing the valve when the thermostat is cooled.

JOHN KUESTER. FRANK A. BECK. 

